2004 Ford Escape consumer reviews

seats are very comftrable, nice height to drive at . The back has a ginarmous amount of space for all sorts of things

When I purchased this vehicle I had it was capable of so much. For the first three years I owned it I used it as a daily with a few long distance trips thrown in per year. For the last three months I've been living out of it while road tripping around the West. It adequately fit me and a second person to sleep in while fully loaded with climbing, skiing, and camping equipment along with 3 months of food and clothes and everything else I could possibly need. Although it was not the 4WD model I drove it through the snow and mountains in Colorado and some of the most heinous dirt roads I ever seen throughout Utah and California and it handled them with ease. It did all of this while averaging 24 mpg on mostly highway driving, 4mpg better than it's rated for. I've never had any reliability issues or major repairs in all the time I've owned my Escape. I love this car!

Ive had mine since day 1. Only owner. She has been all over with me. She has 197000 miles on her & except to tierods & ball joints 2xs the last 3yrs she has never given me any issues. Here's to 10 more yrs!!!

The locking differential on the 2004 model was exactly what I needed to go through deep loose sand last weekend. I saw AWD versions of vehicles and those with less than 7 1/2" ground clearance dug in and stuck so badly they had to be shoveled and pulled out. This is why I had to have a 2004 with the ability to lock the 4WD. Later models only have a viscous coupling that will send 25% power to the rear wheels not a true 50/50 sharing of 4WD power and it has to heat up and start slipping first before it engages. The locking 4WD is better because it does not slip at all and keeps going even through the deepest loose sand. The only Escape new that may be able to handle deep beach sand driving is the new 2013 which is fully electronic. The only drawback to that is it has reduced ground clearance and may drag more than the 2004. I did not have the money to spend on a new one so this 2004 with only 54k miles was the right choice for me. I am completely satisfied as I drove through deep sand where others got stuck. I also got 22 mpg on the highway with the 4 speed overdrive automatic transmission. I have plenty of on and off road trips planned for this fall. I can't wait.

Bought new in Nov03. New transmission installed in 2010 after 60,000 miles. Other than that, I haven't had any major issues with it. I tie my surfboards to the top and it's off to the beach!!! It's convenient for transporting my three dogs if I lower the back seats. I couldn't be happier with my Escape XLT.

It's my first car and I couldn't be happier!! The escape drives smoothly and has plenty of power with its v6 engine. I've used it for transporting large and heavy objects and I can't even feel the weight wheni drive. Wonderful car for an amazing value.

I like it overall but the milage isn't all that good 18-21 I was told I might get better but its not that bad for a four wheel drive

I had a 2004 ford escape. I absolutely loved it! The gas mileage was great, the way it handled back roads was great even though it wasnt four wheel drive, it was a smooth ride and i didnt have any problems with it really except for when the serpentine belt broke. I loved the car..except one day I was going down my very curvy long driveway and was going about 25mph slammed on the breaks and met my moms jeep commander...needless to say since the radiator is in front of the engine so it busted and lifted the radiator upwards into my engine and it also broke the front main frame and they also considered the car totaled even though the air bag didn't even deploy. it made me wonder what would have happened if i would have been going down the highway going more than 25 mph and i would have wrecked..so that being said this may not be a car for a new driver or anything, at least check the safety ratings before hand and consider the fact a fender bender may total it out. . .

It has always been a good car for me and its going on 8 years. I had to replace the front axel due to the gear that drives the anti lock brakes cracking. This repair was $350 which was not bad in my eyes. I do routine oil changes and have had all the other fluids changed once, including the brake fluid. NICE LITTLE SUV...

Its a gutsy little SUV with plenty of power and pick up. I was surprised and how quickly it accelerates . I am 6'4" and it fits me just fine. Gas milieage is around 16 mpg in town